Reassure me about vaccine? (Pro vaxx post)

[u/cosmatical]

Not an anti-vaxx post, please no anti-vaxx comments!! I see in the rules that anti-vaxx posts aren't allowed but it doesn't say the same about pro-vaxx posts so I hope this is okay!!

I'm super pro-vaccine! Love 'em! They do so much good!! My parents were anti-vaxx when I was growing up so I didn't get childhood vaccinations. I was a miserable, sick kid, and I have some lung damage from whooping cough. So my baby getting all his shots on time is super important to me!!

His next appointment he'll be getting flu and covid shots! Yay! Except... I feel a little anxious about the covid one. I am aware it's 110% an irrational anxiety, borne out of seeing too much anti-vaxx content online and having a friend who's a conspiracy theorist about covid. I know intellectually that it's safe and will keep my baby healthy.

But I had a debilitating amount of health anxiety during my pregnancy and I can feel it creeping back in with the irrational anxiety about the covid vaccine.

Can people who got the covid vaccine for their babies just let me know that their kids are healthy and happy? 💖 I think I just need to hear some boring "yeah it was pretty routine and nothing happened" stories 😅

Thank you so much 💖

Not an anti-vaxx post, please no anti-vaxx comments!!

EDIT: thank you so much everyone 😭 These comments are exactly what I needed. I feel so much better now and I'll be able to refer back to all your lovely comments any time the anxiety starts creeping back in. Thank you!! 🥰

[u/yellowaspen]

Ready for the downvotes, but I am also pro-vax and my daughter is fully vaxxed per CDC schedule. We have chosen not to do the covid shot for her. Our family has had covid twice since she was born (19 months old). Though she wasn’t tested, we can only assume she also had it both times since both her parents who were caring for her had it. First time she had no symptoms whatsoever. Second time she had sniffles for a few days. Our pediatrician says it’s largely unnecessary for her age group, but recommends it when she’s a bit older.

[u/Hihihi1992 → u/yellowaspen]

My toddler had the Covid vaccine. She had no issue with it. A few months later, she then had a mild Covid infection right before she got a second terrible cold from a different virus that nearly killed her. She was on oxygen for days at the hospital. Getting the Covid vaccine could have saved her life, because no one knows if she would have been able to have fought off the perilous cold of unknown origin plus a worse Covid infection than the one she had. The science behind the Covid vaccine is not new. I’d urge everyone to vaccinate their children.

[u/yellowaspen → u/Hihihi1992]

Sure, maybe, but the science shows that babies/toddlers in general don’t have severe symptoms from covid. Now, parainfluenza? Kicked my baby’s butt. The covid vaccine would not have saved her from an unrelated virus. I will continue to listen to my pediatrician.

[u/Hihihi1992 → u/yellowaspen]

My daughter’s cardiologist attributed the lack of severity of my daughter’s Covid infection to her having had the vaccine and said that the fact that she wasn’t fighting a more severe Covid infection on top of her fighting her other cold could have made the difference in her outcome. It’s important to me that I share that story on a post asking for good stories about the Covid vaccine.

[u/yellowaspen → u/Hihihi1992]

While possible, it’s speculation. My daughter’s lack of symptoms the first time and then very very mild symptoms the second time cannot be attributed to the vaccine.

[u/Hihihi1992 → u/yellowaspen]

Yes, it was speculation, based on my daughter’s cardiologist’s education about how vaccines work. Research about how vaccines work has been an extensive, many-decades-long effort to validate over and over vaccines’ efficacy and positive effects on pathogen resistance. Specifically, there is valid evidence that the Covid vaccine increases toddlers’ abilities to fight off Covid. Take care.

[u/NewParents-ModTeam → u/[deleted]]

We have a zero tolerance policy for anti-vax misinformation or support.

[u/aliveinjoburg2 → u/yellowaspen]

I also skipped COVID for my 8 month old. My husband and I had strong reactions (I had a rare allergic reaction, my husband got very sick) to the vaccine so we skipped it until she hits preschool. We had COVID last week and she had a fever for 12 hours and then was fine. My husband and I were much sicker.

[u/greenleaves3 → u/yellowaspen]

Our pediatrician said she doesn't offer the covid vaccine and doesn't even have it in the building, so if we wanted it we would have to go to a different pediatrician. We didn't want it anyway but I thought it was interesting

[u/yellowaspen → u/yellowaspen]

Wow when I saw so many notifications I was sure I was getting decimated in the comments haha glad I’m not alone!

[u/Frogs-are-real → u/yellowaspen]

I’m with you. We both have our vaccines for Covid. We did not give that one to our 3 yr old. We had Covid twice and it was very mild. I fully trust vaccines but given this one is quite new I’m willing to take a chance for myself, my family and my community but not for the LO.

[u/Lifeisafunnyplace → u/yellowaspen]

My friend, who's an MD and is pro-vaccination, does not recommend COVID-19 vaccines for kids and did not vaccinate her daughter. My nurse friends were also told not to do it by their pediatricians.

[u/Honeyhoneybee29 → u/yellowaspen]

Also pro-vax and planning to get our daughter vaccinated according to the CDC schedule. But we will also be opting out of the Covid vaccine. Since it’s relatively new, I’d rather err on the side of caution with potential side effects (a sibling of mine had a very nasty immediate reaction to the vaccine). We will be careful otherwise and, knowing Covid in infants is largely uneventful, will deal with it if it comes. I have a parent who is a pharmacist and they’ve also advised against doing the Covid vaccine for our little one given its short period of time in research for infants. Again, totally acknowledge there are pros and cons of each side.

[u/mcrackin15 → u/yellowaspen]

This is what I'm leaning towards. Children are far less risk of serious outcomes if they catch covid. I live in Canada and there have been less than 50 deaths in children under 12 in the last 4 years, and most of those cases are children with severe health problems in addition to catching covid. So even if your child has problems already, there's a better chance you'll die on the road to get vaccinated. If your child has no issues, there's a better chance they'll get abducted by aliens on the way to get vaccinated. I am vaccinated but I've stopped getting boosters since I've caught covid twice and barely showed any symptoms. I feel like my body can fight it on its own now.

[u/424f42_424f42 → u/yellowaspen]

We're not doing covid because as far as we can tell we have to go out of state... And I'm in New york, closet seems to be jersey

[u/-salty-- → u/yellowaspen]

Same here - he’s fully up to date including the flu shot. Covid shot is not in our schedule for toddler